Jet vest



p 1964 T. M. MOORE ETAL 3,150,847

JET VEST Original Filed Nov. 15, 1961 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Thomas M. Moore IHermon F. Beduerftig,

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Sept. 29, 1964 T. M. MOORE ETAL JET VEST Original Filed Nov. 15, 1961 2Sheets-Sheet 2 .m m em w n u d M. w am mm .mu f 00 TH w mm mVQV mm mmawn Patented Sept. 29, 1964 3,150,847 JET VEST Thomas M. Moore,Huntsville, Ala., and Herman F. Beduerftig, 2304 Galatin St. SW.,Huntsville, Ala.; said Moore assignor to the United States of America asrepresented by the Secretary of the Army Original application Nov. 15,1961, Ser. No. 152,689. Divided and this application Apr. 3, 1963, Ser.No. 270,476

7 Claims. (Cl. 244-4) (Granted under Title 35, US. Code (1952), see.266) The invention described herein may be manufactured and used by orfor the Government for governmental purposes without the payment of anyroyalty thereon.

This invention relates generally to an anti-gravitational device, andmore particularly to a portable propulsion system controlled by a userand hereinafter referred to as a jet vest.

The present application is a division of application Serial No. 152,689,filed November 15, 1961, in the name of Thomas M. Moore and Herman F.Beduerftig, entitled Jet Vest.

The need for a light weight, compact jet vest that can be easilycontrolled by the individual foot soldier has long been recognized. Thepredominant requirements of such a vest have been directed towards theestablishment of a suitable design configuration to provide thenecessary stability as well as the incorporation of adequate safetyfeatures. These requirements have been fulfilled by this invention. Thestability requirement has been successfully met by designing a harnesswhich fits around the users body. A pair of identical jet thrust nozzlesare attached to the harness at each side of the users shoulders in sucha way that the lifting force is applied through the center of gravity ofthe user. This arrangement has resulted in sufiicient stability to allowthe operator freedom of movement of his upper body which can beutilized, to a limited extent, for directional control. Primarily,however, stability and control of the person is achieved through manualpositioning of the two nozzles.

As a result of the increased firepower of modern warfare the presentinvention is designed to provide the combat soldier with greatermobility on the battlefield. The jet vest is designed to enable combattroops to overcome terrain obstacles such as rivers, broken ground,cliifs, and the like. The invention would have many other applicationssuch as use in transporting individuals from ship to shore, ship toship, and providing a means for low altitude bailout from low flyingaircraft. It might also be used by skin divers or frogmen to propelthese men from the surface of the water to a desired position ashore.The military value of the jet vest would also be of particularsignificance in the future with the anticipation of mans exploration onthe moon where the gravitational field is approximately one sixth ofthat on the earth.

In the past aircraft, land vehicles and ships have been used in thetransportation of troops. All these modes of transportation fail tosatisfy the needs of the individual soldier on the battlefield. Thus,the jet vest is a special purpose device for unusual missions whichcannot be performed by conventional means.

It is, therefore, one object of this invention to provide a device forenabling the combat soldier to scale cliffs, cross rivers, or overcomeother terrain obstacles resulting in greater individual mobility.

It is another object of this invention to provide the combat soldierwith a mode of transportation which will present a minimum target forenemy fire.

It is another object to provide a light and inexpensive device of thecharacter described that will be fully etficient for its intendedpurpose.

It is a further object of this invention to develop thrust for the jetvest through the use of a rocket motor which has a high thrust per unitweight, quick, dependable starting, and a compact motor which does notrequire any large propellers operating at high rotational velocities.

According to the present invention the foregoing and other objects areattained by providing an anti-gravitational device in the form of a jetvest which is attached to a user of the device and which hascontrollable propulsion means attached thereto to provide forward andupward movement to the user.

A more detailed description of the invention follows, in conjunctionwith a drawing wherein:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective View of the jet vest being used by a soldier.

FIGURE 2 is a sectional view of the attitude and speed control box usedwith the jet vest.

FIGURE 3 is a partial sectional view of a portion of the propulsionsystem.

FIGURE 4 is a diagrammatic view of the propulsion system.

FIGURE 5 is a view taken along lines 5-5 of FIG- URE 3.

Referring to FIGURE 1, a user 2, such as a combat soldier, is shownwearing a jet vest 1. The jet vest comprises a parachute type harness 3which straps around the user as shown in the figure. A thin, lightweightmetal plate 5 shaped to the contour of the users back is attached to theback of harness 3 by any suitable means such as rivets. This plateserves as a support for the propulsion system. The propulsion systemincludes an air pressure tank 9 connected to a fuel tank 7 containinghighly concentrated hydrogen perox de.

The fuel tank is connected by a fuel line 25 to a central opening in ahorizontally positioned, hollow bridge pipe 31. At the central openingin the bridge pipe the fuel line connects with a T pipe which dividesline 25 into separate fuel lines 25:: and 25b which each lead to acatalyst chamber 60 rotatably mounted at the end of the bridge pipe.Bridge pipe 31 serves as a support for a pair of jet nozzles 19, 20which are threadably attached to the catalyst chambers 69 and alsoprovides protection for fuel lines 25a, 25b.

A control box 33 having handles 35, 36, and 37 is attached by suitablemeans to the front of the harness. Handle 35 is operatively connected bycontrol wires 53a and 53b to one nozzle 20 to control the angularmovement of said nozzle while handle 36 is operatively connected bycontrol wires 55a and 55b to nozzle 19 to control the angular movementof this nozzle. Handle 37 is operatively connected by control wire 51 toa throttle valve 15 to control the amount of thrust desired from thenozzles.

In FIGURE 2, a control box 33 is shown to be of hollow cylidnrical formdivided by partitions 32 and 39 into three inner sections. A firsthollow shaft 45 is rotatably mounted between one end of the control boxand partition 32. An opening in the end of box 33 is provided so thatshaft 45 may extend therethrough for attachment to handle 36. A pair ofclosely spaced securing members 40, 42 are attached to shaft 45 andpositioned apart so that in the position shown member 42 is at the topand member 40 is at the bottom of shaft 45. Control wires 55a and 55bextend from nozzle i9, through a protective sheath 22 attached tobracket 64, through the control box opening 47 and attach to members 40,42 of shaft 45. A second shaft 43 extends through the center of handle36, through hollow shaft 45 and partition 32, and is rotatably securedto partition 39. A handle 35, slightly smaller in diameter than handle36, is attached to one end of shaft 43 and positioned outwardly adjacentto handle 36. A second pair of closely 3 spaced securing members 44 and46 are attached to shaft 43 and also positioned 180 apart so that in theposition shown member 46 is at the top and member 44 is at the bottom ofshaft 43. Control Wires 53a and 53b extend from nozzle 20, through aprotective sheath 24 attached to bracket 64, through the control boxopening 48 and attach to members 44, 46 on shaft 43. A third shaft 41 isrotatably mounted between the other end of control box 33 and partition39. An opening at the other end of box 33 is provided so that shaft 41may extend therethrough for attachment to handle 37. A securing member52 is centrally attached at the top of shaft 41. Control wire 51 issecured to member 52 so that when handle 37 is initially turned ineither direction wire 51 will be tensioned. A guide member 50 ispositioned above member 52 and wire 51 is led out of control box 33through opening 49 and connected to throttle valve 15. By turning handle37, the user can control the amount of fuel fed to catalyst chambers 69.

FIGURE 3 shows how nozzle 19 is mounted and controlled at the end ofpipe 31. Nozzle 19 is threadably attached to catalyst chamber 60 whichis a closed cylindrical member. Chamber 61) is rotatably secured to theend of pipe 31 by a screw 65 which engages with an annular slot 66 ofpipe 31. As more clearly shown by FIG- URE 2, wires 55a and 55b areinclosed by a hollow metal sheath 22 which is attached by a bracket 64to bridge pipe 31. Wire 55b passes out the end of sheath 22, over apulley 7 6 which is rotatably mounted on pipe 31, through a guide ring61 attached to the top of bridge pipe 31 and is connected to securingmember 62 which is disposed on the outside of member 60. Wire 55a passesout the end of sheath 22 over pulley 76 through ring 61 and is connectedto securing member 68 which is disposed on the outside of member 60opposite member 62. By turning handle 36 in one direction, wire 55a willtighten and wire 5512 will loosen to effect a rearward movement ofnozzle 19, and by turning handle 36 in the other direction wire 55b willtighten and wire 55a will loosen to effect forward movement of nozzle19. The total angular movement of the nozzle is approximately 15 ineither direction. In a similar manner the forward and rearward movementof nozzle 20 is controlled by handle 35 and connecting wires 53a and53b. Besides providing individual movement to nozzles 19 and 20 forattitude control it is well within the scope of this invention to havethe nozzles move simultaneously in the same or in opposite directions.Thus, by means of a locking pin (not shown) handles 35 and 36 could belocked together so that by turning handle 35 in one direction nozzles 19and 20 would simultaneously move forward and my turning handle 35 in theopposite direction nozzles 19 and 20 would simultaneously move rearward.Through the use of additional control wires it would require no morethan mechanical skill to design a means by which nozzles 19 and 20 couldmove in opposition simultaneously. That is, by turning handle 35 in onedirection nozzle 19 would move forward and nozzle 26 simultaneouslyrearward at the same angular speeds. Conversely, by turning handle 35 inthe opposite direction nozzle 19 would move rearward and nozzle 20simultaneously forward at the same angular speeds.

FIGURE 4 shows a diagrammatic view of the propulsion system used withthe jet vest. A thin metal plate 5 serves as a support for air pressuretank 9 which is connected to fuel tank 7 by a metal conduit 23. Thetanks m'e secured to plate 5 by brackets 4. A shut off valve 11, whichis located in conduit 23 adjacent the air pressure tank, is followed bya pressure regulator valve 13 which is preset to feed the desired amountof air pressure to the fuel tank. A second metal conduit or fuel line 25connects the fuel tank to catalyst chambers 60. A throttle valve 15 ispositioned in conduit 25 to control the amount of fuel fed to catalystchambers 60 positioned at the ends of pipe 31. The catalyst, whichdecomposes the highly concentrated hydrogen peroxide, may be in the formof an impregnated carrier stone containing permanganate or in the formof activated silver screens. After decomposition, the superheated steamand gaseous oxygen exhaust through nozzles 19 and 20 to provide forupward and forward movement of the user. It should be noted that fuelline enters at the center of bridge pipe 31 in order to provide equaldistribution of fuel to lines 25a and 25b on each side of pipe 31 andthus effect equal thrust from nozzles 19 and 20.

FIGURE 5 shows control wires a and 55b passing through guide ring 61which is attached to pipe 31, around chamber 69, and connected tosecuring members 68 and While we have illustrated and described thepreferred embodiment of our invention, it is to be understood that we donot limit ourselves to the precise construction herein disclosed andthat various changes and modifications may be made within the scope ofthe invention as defined in the appended claims.

We claim:

1. An anti-gravitational device for a user comprising a parachute typeharness carried by the user; a metal plate attached to the back of saidharness; a pair of interconnecting tanks secured to said metal plate,one of said tanks containing fuel and the other of said tanks containinga source of pressurized air for pressurizing said fuel tank; a bridgepipe secured to said metal plate and extending therefrom in laterallyopposite directions; a pair of gas generators each secured at theopposite ends of said bridge pipe; means connecting said fuel tank tosaid gas generators for flow of said fuel thereto for generation of thegas; a pair of nozzles each respectively secured to said gas generatorsand disposed for expulsion of said gas therefrom; flow control meansmounted between said fuel tank and said gas generators to control flowof fuel thereto; means for attitude and speed control of said deviceincluding a container having three handles externally positioned at theends of said container, two of said handles operatively connected tosaid nozzles to provide attitude control of said device, the remainingone of said handles operatively connected to said flow control means foractuation thereof to vary the amount of fuel flow to i said gasgenerators and thus control the speed of said device.

2. A device as set forth in claim 1 wherein said tanks areinterconnected by a conduit having a pressure regulator therein toprovide the desired amount of air pressure exerted on the tankcontaining the fuel.

3. A device as set forth in claim 2 wherein said means connecting saidsource of fuel to said gas generators includes a second conduit enclosedin said bridge pipe and extending therewith in laterally oppositedirections for communication with each of said gas generators, a centralopening positioned at the center of said pipe, said second conduitconnecting said source of fuel through said flow control means to saidcentral opening.

4. A device as set forth in claim 3 wherein said source of fuel consistsof highly concentrated hydrogen peroxide.

5. A device as set forth in claim 4 wherein an impregnated stonecatalyst for decomposing said hydrogen peroxide is disposed in saidsecond conduit.

6. A device as set forth in claim 5 wherein said flow control meanscomprises a throttle valve disposed intermediate said source of fuel andsaid second conduit and operatively connected to said remaining one ofsaid handles for actuation thereby to control flow of fuel to said gasgenerators.

7. An anti-gravitational device for a user comprising a parachute typeharness for support of the user, a thin metal plate attached to the backof said harness, a pair of tanks secured to said plate, one of saidtanks containing a source of pressurized air, the other of said tankscontaining highly concentrated hydrogen peroxide, a conduit connectedbetween said tanks and having a pressure regulator therein to providethe desired amount of pres- 5 surized air to said tank containing thehydrogen peroxide, a bridge pipe horizontally secured to the top of saidplate, a central opening located at the center of said pipe, a secondconduit connected between said central opening and said tank containingthe hydrogen peroxide, a throttle valve disposed in said second conduitto control the flow of hydrogen peroxide to said bridge pipe, a pair ofchambers disposed at the end of said bridge pipe and having animpregnated stone catalyst therein for decomposing said hydrogenperoxide, a pair of fuel lines connected at said central opening andextending through said bridge pipe to each of said chambers; a pair ofjet nozzles, one of said nozzles connected to one of said chambers andthe other of said jet nozzles connected to the other of said chambers;said pipe serving to support said nozzles and to protect said fuellines; a horizontally positioned cylindrical container attached to thefront of said harness, said container being divided by partitions intosections, one section having a longitudinal shaft rotatably mountedbetween one of said partitions and one end of said container, a handleconnected to said shaft on the outside of said container, a firstcontrol wire operatively connected from said shaft to said throttlevalve so that the user may move the handle to vary the amount of fuelentering said catalyst chambers, the other section having shaft meansrotatably mounted and extending between said one partition and the otherend of said container, and second and third handles connected to saidshaft means on the outside of said container, control wires operativelyconnected from said shaft means to each of said nozzles so that the usermay move the second and third handles to provide for attitude control.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS2,864,361 Johnson Dec. 16, 1958 3,021,095 Moore Feb. 13, 1962 3,098,625Thielman July 23, 1963

1. AN ANTI-GRAVITATIONAL DEVICE FOR A USER COMPRISING A PARACHUTE TYPEHARNESS CARRIED BY THE USER; A METAL PLATE ATTACHED TO THE BACK OF SAIDHARNESS; A PAIR OF INTERCONNECTING TANKS SECURED TO SAID METAL PLATE,ONE OF SAID TANKS CONTAINING FUEL AND THE OTHER OF SAID TANKS CONTAININGA SOURCE OF PRESSURIZED AIR FOR PRESSURIZING SAID FUEL TANK; A BRIDGEPIPE SECURED TO SAID METAL PLATE AND EXTENDING THEREFROM IN LATERALLYOPPOSITE DIRECTIONS; A PAIR OF GAS GENERATORS EACH SECURED AT THEOPPOSITE ENDS OF SAID BRIDGE PIPE; MEANS CONNECTING SAID FUEL TANK TOSAID GAS GENERATORS FOR FLOW OF SAID FUEL THERETO FOR GENERATION OF THEGAS; A PAIR OF NOZZLES EACH RESPECTIVELY SECURED TO SAID GAS GENERATORSAND DISPOSED FOR EXPULSION OF SAID GAS THEREFROM; FLOW CONTROL MEANSMOUNTED BETWEEN SAID FUEL TANK AND SAID GAS GENERATORS TO CONTROL FLOWOF FUEL THERETO; MEANS FOR ATTITUDE AND SPEED CONTROL OF SAID DEVICEINCLUDING A CONTAINER HAVING THREE HANDLES EXTERNALLY POSITIONED AT THEENDS OF SAID CONTAINER, TWO OF SAID HANDLES OPERATIVELY CONNECTED TOSAID NOZZLES TO PROVIDE ATTITUDE CONTROL OF SAID DEVICE, THE REMAININGONE OF SAID HANDLES OPERATIVELY CONNECTED TO SAID FLOW CONTROL MEANS FORACTUATION THEREOF TO VARY THE AMOUNT OF FUEL FLOW TO SAID GAS GENERATORSAND THUS CONTROL THE SPEED OF SAID DEVICE.